KSS said the acquisition allows it to better serve customers and leverage the synergistic capabilities of its various complementary technologies in the dairy, food, and beverage markets.
"The acquisition of RELCO marks an important step in KSS's transformation to become an integrated solutions provider, delivering superior value to existing and new customers," said Manny Singh, president of KSS.
"We believe that separation challenges in the dairy, food, and other industries are complex and rarely solved with one technology. The acquisition of RELCO adds complementary evaporation and drying technologies to the existing membrane and ion exchange offering of KSS. This combined product offering, along with deep applications knowledge, will ensure a seamlessly integrated solution while delivering maximum value to our customers."
KSS already provides membrane products to the food and dairy industry, having pioneered the development of the sanitary spiral wound membranes commonly used today. KSS said it seeks to drive technological innovation to meet market needs through the vertical integration of KSS' membrane filtration and ion exchange capabilities with RELCO's evaporation, spray-drying and crystallization processes.
"I founded this company almost four decades ago offering only sanitary welding services and came to realize the greater need for custom designed and engineered systems in the dairy market," Loren Corle, founder and owner of RELCO, said.
"Since then, I have proudly watched RELCO grow and evolve its technologies to ensure that we are always the first call when customers are faced with a challenge. I am thrilled that KSS shares that same mentality and desire to work collaboratively with their customers to develop strong, long-lasting relationships."
Mark Litchfield, president of RELCO, said, "This acquisition will allow us to offer integrated and innovative membrane filtration and ion exchange systems with our solutions targeting value addition, energy efficiency, and waste minimalization. KSS offers ideal growth conditions for an innovative and quality-focused company like RELCO and we are excited to be a part of this expansion."
RELCO supplies cheese systems, evaporators, drying systems, powder handling systems, and after-market solutions to more than 500 cheese and dairy plants globally.